Moody’s Analytics, a leading provider of analytics to support risk management, invites US business owners to try the MARQ (Moody’s Analytics Risk Quality) business credit score. The MARQ score is part of Moody’s Analytics’ efforts to equip small businesses with tools to facilitate their growth and access to credit. The MARQ score is available for free at www.MARQscore.com.

Blockbuster thought they had it made, yet they could have turned into a Netflix. Borders thought in terms of books, when they should have thought in terms of Kindles and electronic distribution. Kodak invented the first digital camera, but was afraid to introduce it for fear of losing sales of film. The value of taxi medallions is declining, as Uber (a technology company) is changing the business model. Airbnb is changing how people secure accommodations.

Ask any small business owner applying for a bank loan what their biggest gripe with the process is, and more than a few are likely to mention the tortoise pace at which loan applications are reviewed and approved.

Bank loans are notorious for their lengthy loan application processes, with most taking a few weeks to complete. Though the economy is in recovery mode, the recession made a huge impact on how banks deal with small business loans. Banks now require more from a loan applicant and are stricter about who they lend to. For this reason, the underwriting process can seem to drag on, and this puts a strain on small business owners who find themselves in the “need cash now” boat.

One of the best things about all of these is the opportunity you have to check out the Apps and the vendors. The demos are terrific, and specials are readily available. Groups that often attend include TSheets (above), Hubdoc, Funding Gates, ScanWriter, LivePlan, Finagraph and Bill.com. The learning opportunities will surround you.

It’s time to make sure your clients come to you for advisory services regularly, and not just once a year. Have you set up Dashboards that they can see? This will prompt clients to ask you how they can be more profitable, liquid and solvent. It’s all about client advisory services, and not about compliance. Compliance is a necessary evil and a commodity service, whereas advisory services allow you to value-add price and drive recurring revenue.

Imagine you’re a business owner. Most of your day is spent running your business, leaving no time to work on your business. From coordinating employees and paying vendors to managing inventory and customer service – the demand is endless. At the end of each day, it can be overwhelming to identify inefficiencies and detect where money is falling through the cracks. That's where Finagraph comes in.

If you own a small business and have tried to get a loan in recent years, you probably know frustration like the back of your hand.

Now that the economy has improved, small businesses have seen an easing of the tight credit that hindered expansion plans during the Great Recession and beyond. And banks, flush with money, are eager to do more business with the rapidly growing small-business sector. But banks still confront low-net-interest margins that continue to depress earnings, putting more pressure on them to look for ways to cut costs.

Finagraph and Maestrano hosted a webinar together on, "Using Dashboards to Make More Money."

Listen to this 30-minute video on dashboards – what they are, how they work, and how they can help you better understand your business. We go through some of the common questions about financial dashboards and best kept secrets.

Small business remains one of the largest and most profitable client segments for banks. They provide low cost deposits, high-quality loans and offer numerous cross-selling opportunities. However, recent reports indicate that a majority of business owners are dissatisfied with their banking relationship. In fact, more than 33 percent are actively shopping for a new relationship.

Business owners spend so much time working in their business, that they often lose sight of working on their business. In an economy where the stakes are increasingly high and cash progressively scarce, business owners must proactively manage the balance sheet and income statement or risk falling victim to the five silent killers of cash flow. Sixty percent of companies are misfinanced in the US – is your business one of them? Find out by watching this live webinar hosted by Mike Milan, Senior Vice President of Finagraph with Cloud9 Real Time.

Do you really know where your commercial and small business clients stand financially? I bet if you ask your commercial lending relationship managers they will say they do - but do they really? The bigger question is how you could be more tied into to your business clients so that you could give them real advice that may save their businesses. More questions?? Nope, just one answer.